The price of love
by Emerald Frog
Summary: Accursed be he who first invented war. The funeral for one of the many lives that has been claimed by the last battle.


He was gone. She would never hear him speak again. Never smile at his stupid jokes, or laugh when he messed up her hair. He was her brother, but now he was gone.

Ginny stood in the cold, the wind whipping her hair around her face and her black skirt blowing to the side. She didn't notice, she didn't care. The priest tossed the dust onto the coffin with a few final words. Tears fell silently down Ginny's cheeks. She didn't notice. The coffin was slowly lowered into the cold ground. She wanted to run forwards, grab onto it, never let him go. She couldn't. The coffin lowered slowly and her tears became bigger as she realized for the first time just what this meant.

She would never see him again. Ever. No one would. He would never send her another letter ensuring her that he was alright…because he wasn't. He was gone. It wasn't fair! Why did it have to be HER brother? Why not someone else. Anything to have him back again.

The coffin hit the bottom of the grave. She didn't notice. Someone hugged her, but she didn't know who it was. Her sight was blurred by tears. She stood stiffly as the person walked away. Not a word was spoken, but Ginny didn't care. If she opened her mouth now she would break down entirely. He wouldn't have wanted that.

It started to rain. Ginny didn't notice. She stood, shivering, looking at the grave where her brother would spend the rest of time. It looked so lonely and cold. She wanted to hug him again. She wanted a chance to say goodbye. She wanted him back. She wouldn't get what she wanted. She brushed wetness off her cheek, unsure of whether it was rain or tears or both.

She didn't want to move, didn't want to leave him alone. He shouldn't be alone. Just because he was gone, didn't mean he should be alone. She knelt beside the grave, tears now falling into it. The sound of her tears hitting the coffin was indistinguishable from the sound of the rain doing the same.

In a fairytale, like the ones he used to read to her, he would come back to life now. The magic of her tears would bring him back and they would life happily ever after. Of course, this wasn't a story. This was real, and he was really dead. Ginny wished with every fiber of her being that it would turn into a story and he would come back, all the while knowing that it wasn't possible.

Nothing could bring back a dead person. He wouldn't want to be a ghost, to exist for all eternity, without actually living. She would never see him again. And what was worse, this was all her fault. She hadn't made it in time to save him. She thought he would be okay on his own. He wasn't, and she hadn't noticed until it was too late.

She had been the one to find him, his skin pale, brown eyes wide in fear. His freckles stood out more than they ever had. His mouth was twisted into a scream that had never left him. It had all been too quick. And she could have saved him. If only she had been faster, stronger, smarter, he would still be here.

He had always told her she wasn't one of those girls who could be beautiful when she cried. She had always grinned at those words, but now there was no I _him_ /I to tell her that and cheer her up. Of course, he had always been right. Her eyes were red and her face was blotchy and her tears weren't those small crystal ones that could be brushed away with a finger. Hers were large and round and were hard to brush away with an entire fist, but Ginny didn't notice.

A quiet moan escaped her throat, perhaps drawing more attention to herself than she had already gathered with her quiet sobs, but Ginny didn't notice. Her sole attention was on the grave, on the man in the box whom she would never see again. She supported herself on her arms, her legs not being strong enough to take her weight yet. She remained kneeling next to the hole in the ground which was to become her brother's permanent home.

Thinking about how he would stay there forever only made Ginny's sobs louder. No one could blame her for it. Her brother was gone, it was her fault, she had a right to cry. Of course, she had been told by countless people that it wasn't her fault, but they didn't know. They didn't know she could have done something. They didn't know she could have saved him.

Ginny shook with grief. He was gone. She felt like screaming, breaking things, doing I _something_ /I . The other people here were all grieving for the loss of the man, but Ginny felt she was feeling the worst. After all, none of them could be feeling as horrible as she was. She could have I _saved_ /I him! None of these people would have let him deal with it himself, thinking he could do it alone. They would have helped anyway.

People were starting to leave, having had enough of the sad atmosphere, but Ginny didn't notice. She felt a hand on her shoulder, but she didn't care. She shrugged it off, wanting to remain with her brother as long as she could. For the first time since her brother had been lowered underground, Ginny heard someone speak. Something about going home. She shook her head, tears still flowing down her face, although her sobs had left her in silence.

She felt arms wrap around her waist, lifting her into the air. She beat her fists lightly on the person's back, not knowing or caring who it was. Her fists did no damage as she was too tired and grief stricken to hit very hard. She was carried slowly away from her brother.

She gave up fighting against the person carrying her, letting her tears soak through the person's shirt, not caring anymore. There was nothing she could do. She couldn't stay with him forever. The rational part of her mind argued to make her relax and leave with the rest of her family. But her family wasn't complete anymore. She couldn't leave her brother out in the rain, alone and cold.

Gathering her last bit of strength, she broke free of the person carrying her, running back to the grave and once again kneeling in the mud next to it. He wouldn't have to be alone. She would stay with him. Her tears had already soaked through her shirt, making it cling to her body, with help from the rain. Her skirt and boots were covered in mud. Ginny didn't notice.

She didn't notice when the person came back and helped her to stand, then walked with her back to her house. She didn't notice when the person brought her up to her room and laid her on her bed. She didn't notice when she fell asleep, tears still falling.

Ginny stood at the foot of the grave, now filled in and covered in grass. She laid the flowers on top, next to the stone that told the world that the man in the grave was a loving brother, a wonderful son, and a good friend. It also stated in small letters at the bottom, that he had always loved dragons. At the top, inscribed in beautiful letters was the name of Ginny's much loved brother.

Charlie Weasley


End file.
